Mexico weekly ledger., 1887-04-07
Romance Of the Mines.

! 'tThis is indeed . peculiar worid.'
SAID il mining expert al the Planters
blouse yesterday. Here | pick up thu
papers and read of Mrs. Mackay's do
ings in Pari~-hoW she receives the
scions Of royalty. how she eutertains,
how she appears at the opera, how she
dresses, and how she does a thousand
other things, and then | can scarcely
conceive that eighteen years she
kept a boarling-house in Virginia City
and thai | was one of her boaidcrs.
Yet 1T is true, and | often ponder over
IT. She was IA Young widow then.
with an interesting child who has
since mattrti into a Young lady aud
was recently married To an Italian
Prince of some kind. That little girl
has often sat Oh my knee with Il little
TN can in her hand which contained
the contributions of her admirers. In
those days we lived principally on can
ned food, and Mrs. Mackay's back
yard was paved with tin cans. The
child had selected a very pretty can,
which one of the boarders transformed
into a little bank. This was partly
filled with coin. the result of Il tribute
which she levied on her friends. She
would climb on the boartiers' knees,
and, shaking her little bank, would
say: Is you lucky to-day?' This
query had the desired effect, and the
bank receipts were increased. Even
in her days of distress Mrs. Mackay
was a good IN She personally
superintendent affairs and made her
boarders as comfortable as possible. |
was then a superintendent under Fair,
and Mackay was already a millionaire.
Mining stock was the rage then and |
remember often how she woul, come
to me and some of the other boarders
and ask our advice about certain stocks,
and am happy to say that the advice
I gave her was good. and if l had
taken it myself | would now be So
0 $1,000 or 81, 1000, 900 better off than
| am.
Then Mackay took a shine to the
widow, and being rrputed one of the
wcalthiest men i'll the camp he found
smooth sailing. He couldn't win on
his shape nor his beauty, for everybody
who has seen Mackay knows that he
wouldn't take a prize in Il congress of :.
They were married. and the
little girl no longer sat on miners
knees, and mammals delicate hand
longer placed cornbeef and cabbage
on miners plates. They rose faster
than Sheridan stock did last summer.
the only difference being that their rise
was backed by hard coin. The great
lode continued to pour forth
its riches and Mackay and his partner
immensely wealthy, Although
feared in poor circumstances, Mrs.
Mackay showed her good sense by Sc
a private tutor. by whom she
vas drilled and educated for five wears.
The little daughter was put through
he same course and fitted to shine in
he most cultured society of the Old
Then came the conc,lcsts in
lew York, San Francisco, and finally
trips to Europe. A year ago / was
Il Paris and one evening attended Il
performance at the Grand Opera-House.
t was the first night, and prominent
n Il private box We're two ladies be-
with diamonds and fcstooned
'ith flowers. They were the cynosure 1
+ all eyes and, leyeling my glasses, |
iscovered behind the silks, flowers,
nd diamonds the face of nv former
andiady in Virginia City. The out
mes were the same but time had
'rouSht its changes. The young lady
18th her was the little girl who used
play on my knee. She had grown
ut Of my recollection. As / stood
'oklng at them midst the flashing
ghts, the incense of flowers, and the :
eilcious music, l could not help re-
alling something of
one WHO breasted high water,
the North Fork and all thai.
lst to dstIaee with old Fuliansbee's daughter
The lily ot Poverty Fiat"
st. L.oEts Hfbxjiir0n.